What is an ACMA technician and do I need one?

Cabling for phone lines & systems, NBN, internet, cat5e & cat6 data cable, TV & antennas, fibre, CCTV, security and audio systems within Australia requires a licensed ACMA certified technician to perform installation or maintenance on residential and commercial structures.

ACMA requirement is that, any technician who works on telephone line cabling and structures MUST have an OPEN or a RESTRICTED cabling license (restricted means there are restrictions for this license).
For data cables an endorsed STRUCTURED license is also required.
For TV, MATV and satellite a COAXIAL license is required.
For fibre cables a FIBRE license is required.
For testing a TESTING license is required.

Using a ACMA licensed technician means you are getting the job done right and the technicians will follow strict guidelines set out by the ACMA to ensure compliance and safety is to standards. For example, a data cable can not have cross over or contact an electrical cable as there are separation rules and guidelines that must be in place to maintain safety.

Simply put, no license, no can do unless you want a fine in excess of $13,200.00 as the client and the installer.

If you’ve just had that NBN connected and the phone line is coming out of the modem, and you require an extra phone point installed, then you still will need a registered approved cabler to install and terminate your cabling.

Are Electricians Approved?

Not every Electrician is a certified ACMA certified cabling technician, however some are. The ACMA licensing is a separate scheme. If you engage an Electrician to perform tasks either in your home or business, simply ask to see a copy of their ACMA license; they must be able to produce this as apart of the license requirements. Most electricians will have a license card issued from ACRS or TITAB. If they can not produce their license, then DO NOT allow them to do cabling work for you.

Remember this:
An electricians license is not a license to allow data cabling, they must have a seperate ACMA license.
An OPEN or RESTRICTED license only allows work on telephone line structures and points.

Data cabling requires a STRUCTURED endorsement on the ACMA license.
Coaxial cabling required a COAXIAL endorsement on the ACMA license.
Fibre required a FIBRE endorsement on the ACMA license.
Testing required a TESTING endorsement on the ACMA license.

 So simply put, if you want to run a new data cable you will require a certified ACMA technician with their OPEN license and STRUCTURED endorsement.